National Roma Centrum – Kumanovo

Campaign for Roma education (Mobilization of the Roma parents to send children in mainstream schools) – continuing

Evaluation report

2006

Introduction

Guided from the precondition that education is a key for opening of the doors towards better life, the National Roma Centrum in the period January – October 2006 has realized the project Campaign for Roma education (Mobilization of the Roma parents to send children in mainstream schools), with financial support of the Roma Education Fund.

The condition of the Roma in education is reason – consequential relationships where on each side of the triangle are the parents, school and government institutions. But the most important side is the one of the parents. It depends on them whether the children will be included in the educational process and how successful will this be. That is why the most important work of the NRC in the campaign was to work with the parents.

During the six month of the first part of the campaign we concluded that it would be of special significance to work with the parents whose children are to be enrolled in preparation year and first grade in the 2006/2007 school year.

According to new legal determinations, in accordance with the decentralization law “Elementary education lasts nine years and it is obligatory for all children at the ages from six to fifteen years. Pre school education is in jurisdiction of the municipality, while MON is responsible for educational programs. The Ministry for labor and social policy is no longer authorized for pre school education”. According to the new determinations, the dividing of means which include block-dotations which are based on a formula and it is determined in accordance with the stages of fiscal decentralization. The formula is based on number of pupils in elementary and high schools on the municipality’s territory.

NRC considered that in the forth coming period would be significant to work with the smallest ones (on their intensive inclusion in the educational process). That is why in the period August-October we realized three months extension of the campaign which included the Roma children which were to be enrolled in preparation year and in first grade, as well as their parents and all of the surrounding factors (schools, institutions, and media).

The general conclusion is that in relation to last year the enrollment of children in first grade in Skopje, Prilep and Kumanovo has increased for 50%. On the other hand NRC’s data also show that at least 1000 children are outside of the educational process.

For realization of these activities we have received support from several municipalities, but we consider that one of the most significant supports is the one we received from the Philosophical Faculty in Skopje (so far the representatives from the highest education have not shown interest for the campaign activities even though they were regularly informed). The supports can be followed up as Annex 1.

Methodology

The campaign in its total realization (January – October 2006) was pointed towards three main target groups:

Parents and their children

Government institutions, schools and the local self-government

Macedonian media

For realization of the goals relating to the three target groups the following methods were used:

Direct contacts (home visits) – during which the field educators talked with the Roma parents in Skopje, Prilep and Kumanovo, they delivered the message for the campaign directly to them and they offered assistance for enrolment of their children in schools. In the first part of the campaign a total number of 10 500 Roma families were visited, and in the second part 808 families were visited, who in the school year 2006/2007 should have enrolled in the preparation year and in first grade.

Filling up and working on the questioners – In the first part of the realization all of the Roma families (10 500) filled up questioners for evaluation of the condition of the education of the Roma in the three cities. The results of the questioners are presented in point 1.4. in the evaluation report.

Indirect contacts through mail – To all of the parents for whom we had data that they have children for enrolment in the preparation year and in first grade we sent them letters with which we informed them about the meaning of the education and the obligatory participation in the educational process.

Direct consultations – each day in the NRC office people came to whom we offered advice and assistance. We also realized telephone contacts with the people from other cities.

Media activity – this method showed as especially effective for achieving of the campaign goals. During the entire campaign a Medial Lobby Group was engaged which managed to activate the printed and the electronic media with continuously placing of information and positive stories about the education of the Roma. Their activity also influenced on the other Macedonian journalists who placed positive information about the Roma.

Workshops for the journalists – during the campaign two workshops were realized on which Macedonian, Roma and Albanian journalists attended who discussed about the approach towards the Roma problematic, with an accent on education of the Roma children. On the second workshop the journalists created a media strategy for positive approach.

Visits of 17 elementary schools in Skopje, Prilep and Kumanovo – direct visits in schools in the second part of the campaign were used for establishing of basis for cooperation, for presentation of the campaign and the interest for inclusion of the Roma children in schools. We offered assistance to the schools in relation with the parents. We also analyzed the representation of the Roma children in education in relation to last year.

Constant informing of representatives of government institutions, schools, and local self governments – in realization of the campaign we constantly sent information via e-mail, fax and mail.

Effectiveness

– Meeting the set goals in the first part of realization of the campaign and in its continuance

1. Motivated Roma parents who enrol their children in the preparation year and in first grade

1.1. Assisting of the parents for enrolling their children in schools

During the realization of the first part of the campaign we created our own data base which included information for more than 50% of the Roma families in Kumanovo, Prilep and Skopje. Based on those data we separated the families which have children at the ages 5, 6and 7 and we prepared lists for visits in their homes.

Sending official letters to the parents – Although it was not planned in the project we evaluated that it would be very positive if sent an official letter to the Roma families in which we informed the parents that it is time to enrol their children and to turn to us if they need additional information or assistance. In the letters to the parents who have children at the ages 5 and 6, the meaning of education was especially pointed out that preparation education is obligatory and that they need to enrol their children in school. These kinds of letters were sent by mail to more than 500 Roma families.

But we encountered a large problem – migration of the Roma families from one town to another and a large number of letters were returned back to the organization, which meant changing of the number of the Roma children and pupils.

Home visits – regarding the experience from the first part of the campaign, when in Skopje we faced with difficulties and not enough serious pollsters, in the second part of the campaign we engaged more field motivators from Kumanovo, for whom we organized group transports to Skopje and Prilep. In that way we provided total visitation of the families. In Kumanovo the same people from the first visit were engaged, because of the gained trust between the families and the field motivators.

Before the beginning of the visits we organized training for the motivators, we taught them about the purpose of the visits, the ways of offering assistance to the parents, as well as data for the schools in which they could enrol their children. During the visits the field educators had prepared lists with names of the parents and the children, as well as their addresses, which were supplemented after they had come up with new families which had children for preparation year and first grade, so the number of 500 families increased to 808. The examples of the lists are included in the report as Annex 6.

After the sent letters and the realized visits NRC’s office was overcrowded with interested parents. During the conversations with them we encountered problems in Kumanovo and Prilep.

Problems in Kumanovo – In Kumanovo the parents from the Sredorek settlement insisted for their children to be enrolled in E. S. “11 Oktomvri” where because of the large number of Roma pupils clear Roma classes were formed. They choose this school because of its proximity to the Sredorek settlement, and because of the fact that the largest part of the Roma children from the city attends classes there. In order to avoid creating of clean ethnic groups and schools we pointed out to the parents to enrol their children in the slightly further schools “Braka Miladinovci” and “Krste Misirkov”. They are 1 km away, with dense traffic all the way to the schools. Because of that the parents did not want to take an obligation to take their children every day to the school.

In the meantime all of the necessary conditions were created so that the children could be enrolled in these two schools. An agreement was made by the municipality with the three schools for dividing of the pupils. The doors of the other two schools were open for the Roma pupils. In “11 Oktomvri” the quota for enrolment was already filled up. But, however, a small part of the parents enrolled their children in the other two schools.

From talking with the parents, we evaluated that they would have enrolled their children in the other two schools if transportation was provided.

For the Roma children there is no place in the Kumanovo schools!
Not one from the nine elementary schools in Kumanovo wants to enroll the fifty children from the Sredorek settlement.

STOLE BOZINOVSKI

KUMANOVO – For fifty Roma children from the Kumanovo settlement Sredorek, there is no place in not one of the nine elementary schools in the city. This case was actualized by the Roma non governmental organizations who pressurize the local self government to urge the schools to obey the law and to seize with the silent discrimination towards the Roma. “Seven NGOs are dealing with the problems of the Roma, from which, two of them are “specialized” with the educational problems, but you can see what is going on”, says Asmet Elezovski, one of the fighters for greater rights of the Roma in Kumanovo.
In front of the entrance of the elementary school “11 Oktomvri” each day groups of Roma can be seen who insist to enrol their children. The principle of the school Krume Mladenovski, who is the only person from the education prepared to speak openly about this problem. This school for years has been “pre booked” with Roma pupils, because the other ones so called “elite” schools “Krste Misrkov” and “Braka Miladinovci” practice hidden discrimination for the children from the Roma population. The way of discrimination is perfidious, and it is practiced by both the teachers and the parents who disagree that their children should study together with the Roma children. “This kind of hidden discrimination entered in the ‘most Roma school’, “11 Oktomvri”, because under pressure from the parents who treaten to unroll their children, we had to create, clean ethnic classes with Macedonian and Roma pupils”, say the principle of the school, Mladenovski.

Yesterday several Roma went to his office with requests to enroll their children who are unwanted in the other elementary schools. “My two children, at ages 12 and 13 were expelled by the teacher last year without giving me any document for the reason why were they expelled from the school “Hristijan Karpos”, says Resat Sainovski, father of six children who himself has only three grades of elementary education.

In the elementary school in Gostivar five first graders were put in a ethnic clean class because none of the teachers of the other classes wanted to accept them.

Problems in Prilep – We had a similar problem in Prilep. All of the Roma pupils were enrolled in the E.S. “Dobre Jovanovski” even though the E. S. “Kire Gavriloski Jane” is not far from the Roma settlement and the doors of this school are open for these pupils. They even promised that they would provide school books. In this case the problem was with the parents again, who insisted their children to be enrolled in the school where all the other Roma children go.

For solving of these problems we organized meetings in the Ministry of education and the board for development of languages of members of communities, during which we presented the problem and we looked for means to find a way for overcoming of the problems. The achieved was for the schools, which after this reaction opened the doors and expressed prepareness to receive the children. But nothing was taken in regard of the parents.

Costs for medical confirmations – In this period there was another difficulty. All of the children, who were for the preparation year, were supposed to go on a medical examination and to receive confirmations that they are prepared to go to school, for which 200 denars should have been paid. We sent an official request to the ministry for labour and social policy and the Ministry of health to be tolerant in relation to the social assistance receivers. After the reaction these children got their confirmation and were enrolled in school.

The Roma don’t want only projects, but integration

My name is Ramce but I am called Dzamce. Why? Because I am more naked than dressed, I live in a house, in fact a cottage made out of carton, live bricks and iron. I will tell you a secret, I hid a jar buried in the ground and I hide money in it. I want to collect more money to buy my sister an invalid cart. After I finish eight grades I do not know what to do. I want to be a wall painter to dress in white so that I can be white. Sometimes I think that people do like me because I am black. But what can I do my grandmother says that our God is black. I am Ramce in fact Dzamce, through my window I see my future.

This is an extra from an essay of the student Elena Nakova from Stip on the subject “What is it like to be a Roma in school, home and the society” rewarded by the Macedonian center for international cooperation.

The situation is not very different from the one this student has described in its essay. The Roma NGOs from Macedonia confirm that.

With 70 % from about 200 Roma families from Kumanovo, Skopje and Prilep have a strong will to go to school but can not afford it . The Roma children are being discriminated by their classmates and even their teachers. The country has a strategy on how to neither improve the Roma conditions but does not realize it in practice. We have only a bunch of papers on how to do that but there is no coordination between the institutions – says Asmet Elezovski, the coordinator of the campaign “The key is in your hands” of the NGO National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo.

Members of NGOs from Roma nationality for protection of the Roma rights consider that the citizens from Roma nationality are being marginalized and for that kind of a treatment they blame the state. Others say that the condition is not that desperate and that thing is getting better year after year.

Ghettoization of the Roma.

The Roma are left alone and the state is ghettoizing them in separated settlements, considers Ljatif Demir, member of the European Roma Forum. He calls upon the Constitution to blame the government institutions that the Roma rights are not being respected.

Roma pupils leave schools because after fourth grade they do not have classes on their mother tongue. They have to learn Macedonian although classes on their mother tongue are guaranteed with the Constitution.

He made a remark for the Ministry of education and science that in the books for history there aren’t any data about the culture, tradition and history of the Roma, with critical attitude that “most of the citizens in the country have the opinion that Roma are without tradition”

How can people say that we do have our own history? Are 18 million Roma people not evidence that we do have our own tradition? That is why our authorities need to take up activities with which they will more aggressively influence on the Roma children.

Asmet Elezovski from the National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo considers that things are moving on for the better although very little is being done in practice.

Macedonia needs to be proud with the Roma people and to see us like a treasure. It is good that the Roma from Macedonia are being slowly included in European activities, like in the projects of CoE in Strasbourg. In the European Forum we have five delegates who work on the Roma rights in Macedonia.

Scholarships for stimulation

From all of the minorities Roma children leave schools the most. And then come the children from Turkish nationality, Albanian nationality and part of the Muslim Macedonians, claims Dragan Nedeljkovic director of the Board for development and improvement of languages of ethnical communities with the Department of education.

Poverty and early marriages are the main reasons why Roma children leave schools. The not enough knowledge of the language is another reason and that happens after the fourth grade. No one has the total number of children who drooped out of schools. But roughly said the largest droppage from schools is with the Roma. For example in first grade 100 pupils enrolled and by the time they get to the fifth grade 50 of the dropped out.

Ljubica Grozdanovska

Journalist in daily newspaper “Dnevnik”

1.2. To provide school bags for 2000 Roma pupils

We planned a distribution of 2000 school bags and NRC before the beginning of the distribution, brought a decision to separate personal means if necessary.

The bags were acquire in two turns, first 1625 bags, after which the schools and other NGOs contacted us with lists of pupils, and we acquired 296 more bags, and the total number got to 1921.

The bags in the three cities were distributed in various ways. In Kumanovo the citizens came to our office with receipts from the schools. In Skopje part of the bags were distributed to schools and part of them to the NGOs ESMA and LIL. In Prilep the bags were distributed through the NGO ROMA SOS.

As addition of the report we will deliver all of the lists of the pupils who were given bags.

The distribution of the bags showed motivating for both the parents and the children and after finishing of the distribution we made a comparison of the enrolled Roma pupils within these last two years.

According to the Ministry of education of Macedonia, in the 2005/2006 school year in Skopje 304 Roma pupils enrolled. According to NRC’s data, based on the receipts from the pupils enrolled in 2006/2007 school year, 484 Roma pupils enrolled in 9 elementary schools from total of 69 schools in Skopje. This means that the number of Roma pupils enrolled in first grade for one year increased for 59.2%. In Prilep the number of enrolled children in schools is increased for 50.4%, and in Kumanovo for 43,4%. Also we would like to mention that our data are not complete because we were only involved in 9 schools from total of 69, which means the number of enrolled Roma first graders is larger.

With the beginning of the distribution of the school bags we came up with a number of 1261 enrolled children in the preparation year and in first grade. The number of the acquired bags was larger so we addressed to the schools with requests to send us lists of children from the higher grades who were not able (or did not have) bags, so 1921 bags were given to these children.

According to the data of the Minisitry of education and science in the 2005/2006 school year, in Skopje, in the preparation year 330 Roma children enrolled, and in 2006/2007 according to NRC’s data 635 childen enrolled, which means that in Skopje we have 92.4% increased enrollment. In Prilep the increase in percentage is minimal, while in Kumanovo we have a negative percentage because of the dismantled classes which functioned as a part of the regular educational process last year but this year they have been canceled (a group of about 40 children).

NRC made a public call and delivered a letter to UNICEf to support these Roma children and to help with donating of school materials, but we did not receive any reply to our request. The letter is contributed as Annex 2.

1.3. To help the children to get personal documentation through funding

In regard of this issue we faced with complicated cases, which were not resolved for years. We tried to solve them, and we expected that we could solve a large part of the cases with that fund, but because of the complication, the means were only enough for 9 cases. We encountered many problems where entire families did not have personal documentation, including the mother. We had to arrange for documents for the mother first so that we could arrange documents for the child. In certain cases we cooperated with personal documentation Sectors outside of the country, and we faced with an especially complicated case in Prilep.

With these efforts we consider that we achieved a certain amount of contribution towards solving these kinds of cases, which have been left aside by other institutions and projects, but on the other hand we consider that we are not yet satisfied with the number of resolved cases.

We are delivering a complete documentation of the resolved cases and the cases which are still on going. In Annex 5 there are other problematic cases on which there is still work to be done.

Our analyses of the work with the personal documentation has shown that there 1000 children still outside of the educational system due to lacking of personal documentation.

National Roma Centrum

Enrollment for the Roma children without documents

The elementary schools in Skopje, Kumanovo and Prilep on September 1^st are going to open the doors for about 2000 Roma first graders and to enroll all of the six years olds who do not have personal documentation and whose families do not have the money to send their children to school. This was the manner in which the National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo appealed to the mayors and principles of the elementary schools. The Roma Educational Center from Budapest supports this appeal and hopes that the local authorities will listen to this problem. The analyses of the Center have shown that 400 from the 2000 Roma children that should start going to school on Friday are not recorded in the birth book and do not have any personal documentation. They say that most of the families do not want their children to go to school because they can not afford it. The difficult approach to schools, the poor quality of the classes for the Roma children, as well as the traditional attitude that the children step into early marriages are the rest of the reasons due to which, according to the National Roma Centrum, the number of Roma children is decreasing. They say that last year only 145 children were enrolled in first grade.

Enough has been said, that the Roma children are leaving education in fourth grade and there were enough projects which were supposed to help them go back to school. The problem with the Roma education is needed to be solved when the children are on pre school age. That is why we require from the local authorities and the principles of the elementary school to receive all of the Roma first graders. In the mean time we will gather all of the necessary documents for those that are not recorded – says Asmet Elezovski from the National Roma Centrum.

Not having personal documentation is one of the bigger problems due to which the Romany children are not being enrolled in schools, was confirmed by Dragan Nedeljkovic, director of the Board for development and promotion of education of ethnical communities with the Ministry of education.

We have taken actions for recording of the citizens from Roma nationality. But nothing has been done because the state did not have the money. The Roma non governmental organizations are on the move now, because they have access to foreign funds and they can easily get the money so that they could solve this problem – considers Nedeljkovic

1.4. To show the documentary film at the beginning of the school year

The documentary film was promoted in September on a public promotion and at the end of the month was shown on the national TV Sitel. During October the film was sent to 18 local televisions in the larger cities in Macedonia. In that way we achieved a large percentage of ratings, we got a larger audience and received positive reactions.

The film was also promoted through numerous appearances in morning emissions, newspaper articles and informative programs, through which the idea of the film was also promoted. We are delivering in the report a DVD copy of every appearance and numerous contributions for the campaign.

Evidence for the quality of the film was the received award for greatest television achievement by the UN, awarded in October.

ON BEHALF OF THE UN DAY

Awards for journalism and photography

The United Nations Office in Macedonia granted awards for journalism and photography, on the subject poverty in the country.

This year the following awards have been given:

First prize for the best story in the printed media was received by Todor Stojcevski for the story ” Education for Roma Renaissance”, the second went to Ljubica Grozdanovska for the story “Children laboring for 100 denars”, and the third prize went to Maja Tomic for the story ”If not for the good people we would have been starved and frozen to death”.

The prize for the best TV story was awarded to Dragan Antonovski for the documentary “The key is your hands”, and the prize for the best radio story was awarded to Belinda Koka for the segment “Poverty”. The awards were given at the reception in the “Alexander Palace” hotel, organized on behalf of the United Nations day.

Through the film we wanted to send out a clear message to the Macedonian public, that the Roma can and know how to educate themselves and to achieve positive results.

In the documentary we have made several interviews, with known Roma from Macedonia and abroad: Nicholae Gheroge (OSCE ODIHR), Rutko Kawczinski (ERTF), Martin Demirovski (assistant in the European parliament), Saip Jusuf (the author of the first Roma grammar), and the main character in the film is Vaska B. Mustafa (adviser of the Ombudsman).

The making of the film took longer than we expected because of the engagement of the interviewees.

The song which was planned for he first half of the project, we made some changes. We agreed with the composer Valentino Skenderovski and the director Dragan Antonovski not to implement a song in the film because of the rich content of the interviews. So we recorded a special song for the campaign, entitled DZAN (Go), sung by Tehemana Skenderovska, which we sent to several local radio stations and we used it on public appearances.

During the realization of the campaign we received an offer from the Croatian television, to inform them about the campaign and for the Roma education in Macedonia. During their five day stay in Macedonia they visited all organizations and individuals for which we considered as significant for the Roma education and they gathered information about our activities. The information about the Roma education was broadcasted within the frames of the multiethnic emission “Prizma” of the Croatian television.

This kind of initiative also impelled one Slovenian and two radio stations from Belgrade to contact us and to acquire information in regard of improving the education of the Roma in Macedonia.

1.4. To process the achieved results

During November we worked on processing the data from the entire campaign.

In the first part of the questioning we rounded up a total number of 10 974 residents or 2910 families from Kumanovo, Prilep and Skopje.

From our research we came up with the following pointers.

Educational structure of questioned Roma from Kumanovo, Skopje and Prilep.

Table 1 – Finished education

Table 2 – Current education

Table 3 – Illiterate

From the data we gathered from total of 5283 parents, 1193 are illiterate, and 1311 are semi-literate, which means that 47% of the parents are not able to assist their children in finishing of the school obligations.

Conditions for education of the Roma pupils

*The percentage has been calculated in relation to the total number of 1269 questioned families, who have pupils.

* in 25,37% from the questioned families the children do not have any conditions to study because in the same room the whole family lives and here they perform their living activities. With this the number of potential solid and regular pupils decreases.

*29,09% from the pupils have only a small part of the necessary materials, which includes 2-3 notebooks and a pencil.

* a large part of the Roma pupils feel accepted by the other children, but this is not the case with all them.

* most part of the Roma pupils feel accepted by the teachers, but also a large part of them say that the teachers does not commit enough time to work with them

* the parents usually want their children to finish high and higher education which is an encouraging data, and it batters the idea that they do not want their children to be educated..

* most of the families do not have any books in their households, which reflects negatively on the education and the meaning of books

Questions for the parents

*From the questions addressed directly to the parents the following situation occurs: Non Roma pupils sometime associate with the Roma pupils, the teacher sometimes offer additional help to the Roma child and remains after classes to overcome the school material, non Roma pupils sometimes act poorly towards the Roma children, the teachers sometimes offer additional help to the Roma child, the teachers sometimes call the parents for conversations and sometimes gives the child an opportunity to express his opinion, the children study home every day and do their homework, and they never do that in centers and sometimes take library books and read them at home.

*From the analyses of the domestic conditions, 5% of the Roma families do not have TVs in their houses, 27% do not have bathrooms, which mean that the children do not have hygiene conditions, 63% do not have telephones, 21% do not have radios, 37% live in just one room, and 97% do not have computers at home. In relation to other pupils, with these conditions the Roma children are in a grave situation, without basic opportunities for family education and outside factors for additional education.

2. Engaged elementary schools in the enrolment of Roma pupils in Kumanovo, Prilep and Skopje

2.1. To visit about 30 elementary schools in the three cities.

In Prilep 3 school were visited from which 2 of them have Roma pupils. In Skopje we visited 9 schools according to the data which they sent us. All of the 6 elementary schools were visited in Kumanovo.

The general conclusion is that there is a positive energy and interest with the school boards for inclusion of the Roma pupils, but on the other hand there is a great gap between the schools and the Roma parents. The recommendation and request from the schools refers to assistance and filed activity with the parents so that they could accept the suggestions from the schools for elimination of the ethnic classes.

Through the visits we were informed about several current problems in Kumanovo and in Prilep, and in order to resolve them we organized several meetings and we alarmed the newspapers. In the schools where a larger number of Roma children enrolled, the number of Macedonian pupils decreased and we evaluated that the media influence was quite significant.

In Skopje these problems were mild. In the environments where the Roma live together with other ethnic communities, the Roma pupils are accepted and are regular and solid.

We evidenced a problem in the municipality Suto Orizari where a part of the children go to the clean Roma school “Braka Ramiz i Hamid” and there is a satisfactory regularity of the pupils there. But a large percentage of dropping out is in the school “26 July” where the larger parts of the pupils are Albanians and there is intolerance between the children which was confirmed by the principle himself. The Roma children enrol in this school but during the year they drop out. These problems were especially present in 2001 during and before the war conflict. In time the condition got better and the 2 classes have now increased to 4. In this municipality there is also a problem – the parents insist their children to go to “Braka Ramiz i Hamid”, but there is not enough room for all of them.

Note: During the visit and cooperation with the school “Braka Ramizi Hamid” we noticed that there are flaws in managing and that the school has too many children but not enough room or cadre. It needs better organization to divide the pupils in a better and more efficient way, additional objects and also a promotion of the school to attract non Roma pupils.

After the incident that occurred the day before yesterday in the E. S. “26 July”, the classes continue, but the tension remains

The authorities want to cover up the fight in Sutka

Zaklina Gjordjevic

After the incident that occurred the day before yesterday between Albanian and Roma students in the E. S. “26 July” during which several pupils and parents were injured, the classes went by without any problems. Although part of the Roma and Albanian parents, did not let their children to school yesterday, fearing that the incident might be repeated, for which many comment that it has reflected the inner ethnic intolerance in this part of the city. None of the witnesses wants to comment to officially confirm the fight, in which, besides the pupils, the parents also intervened, nor to tell details about the incident. The deputies just want to distant themselves from the case, saying that it should be forgotten and it should get so much media attention.

The principle of the school, Raif Darlista, who is also a cousin of the Minister of justice, Ismail Darlista, prevented the parents and all of the other parties to enter the school yard and the school, and only several police officers were present there. He was not in the mood to discuss the incident. The Roma disturbed from the incident announced a meeting with the deputy Nezdet Mustafa and the mayor if the municipality Suto Orizari, Erduan Iseni. Both of them were also not in the mood to make a statement, and the same was with the DUI deputy Hisni Sakiri, to whom this is his election unit.

-I was beaten up by a group of Albanians who hit me with a piece of wood, and after they started kicking me. I do not know who or what they were, but I do know that they cursed at me and insulted me because I am Roma, says J. K., a parent of a pupil from “26 July”, who was injured in the fight. J. K. sustained many injuries on the forearm, fingers, ribs and head and was released yesterday on home treatment. He was attacked at the moment when he was getting his nine year old daughter. Previously he heard that there was some kind of an argument in the school, so he went to see what was going on. When he arrived in the school he heard that his son was being beaten up by the Albanians, but he did not knew what exactly happened. His wife, who was also afraid to introduce herself, said that her son was slapped by some Albanian teacher, after the Roma child previously reacted on a provocation from the Albanian students in the school. The Roma complained that they feel threatened by the Albanians and they say that coexisting with them in the school is just impossible.

The Albanians on the other hand say that the opposite has happened. According to them the Roma started the fight the day before yesterday. Some of them say that two days ago an Albanian pupil was injured in the school, although his parents do not want to give a statement for the media. The Albanians say that they were being humiliated by the Roma, and that they throw rocks and insult the Albanian pupils. The Roma say that the Albanians insult them and throw rocks at them.

During the visits the schools commented that the children from the preparation classes have difficulties in communication because they do not know the Macedonian language well enough.

Another problem which we noticed during the enrolment was the lack of a practice which was used, that is to send invitations to all of the parents who have children for enrolment in the preparation year or in the first grade. We used the visits to see what the reason for the lack of this practice was. We learned from them that there are obstacles and that their approach to personal information was prohibited by the Ministry for inner affairs. We visited the local units of the Ministry of education and we sent an appeal that this kind of practice is positive, but we received a reply that because of the changes in the law there is no way to inform the parents in that manner ever again.

2.2 and 2.3. To organize meetings with teacher from preschool and first grade

Relating to the meetings with the teachers, we made a slight adjustment in the realization; instead of having 6 separate meetings we made 3 and on one meeting we discussed about the work of the preparation groups and first grade. This change was made with accordance of the representative of the Ministry of education and science, Miss Vera Mucunska.

A meeting in Prilep – The first meeting was organized in Prilep, where all teachers from preparation year and first grade attended, an inspector from the Government Educational Inspectorate and the councillor for education of Municipality of Prilep.

We positively evaluated this meeting because of the insight in the problematic with which the two schools are facing, as well as open stating of the problematic with creation of clean ethnic classes and enrollement of the Romany children in just one school. As most common problems with which the teachers were facing were: poor cooperation of the parents, the children were not regular on classes, not having basic school materials, unsatisfactory level of hygiene, and not having basic manners of conduction in school. The thing that separates Prilep from Kumanovo and Skopje is the fact that the Roma in Prilep speak the Macedonian language and the children from this city go to school with solid knowledge of the Macedonian language. The problem in this city is with the parents who do not have enough awareness about the meaning of education. The current problems are solved by the teachers with meetings with the parents and home visits, but they still face with not enough cooperation of the parents.

A significant step was the critics which the inspector from the State Educational Inspectorate pointed out to the teachers in regard of their not enough engagement towards these children.

The schools received a clear message from the representative of the Ministry that the determination for children’s enrollement by regions needs to be respected and to avoid forming of clean ethnic classes. Everyone agreed that with assistance of the non governmental sector both schools need to divide these pupil and part of the Roma children who are in the area of E. S. “Kire Gavriloski – Jane” to enroll in that school. From this we can conclude the great interest of schools for enrollment of Roma children.

Meeting in Kumanovo – On the meeting in Kumanovo one teacher from each school attended with the councilors and the principles from all of the six elementary schools from the city. The main topic of the meeting was the problems with which the teachers are facing and pointing out on the effect from the work of the educational centers of the NGOs, and the teachers appealed for opening of more of these kinds of centers. The largest problem with which the Roma pupils from Kumanovo are facing is not enough knowledge of the Macedonian language. The teachers also said the pupils are not regular, are undisciplined, uninterested, they do not have school books, they do not have the means to participate in extra curricular activities, they do not have manners of conduct and very poor hygiene, their parents are mostly illiterate and are not providing enough cooperation. The teachers are trying to overcome these problems with organizing of additional activities, providing of school books and humanitarian assistance, direct conversations, cooperation with non governmental organizations.

We positively evaluated this meeting because of the interest of the teachers, the open discussion for the current problems and the interest for their overcoming.

Meeting in Skopje – On the meeting in Skopje attended one teacher from preschool, first grade, the councilor and principle, two educational inspectors, as well as two representatives from the Board of promotion of languages. We positively evaluated this meeting as well because the teachers shown the problem in a very open and real manner, and they expressed that they need support from the non governmental sector in communication with the parents. According to them the largest problems are overcoming of the Macedonian language, not being regular, not enough interest of the parents, as well as the dependence of the Roma from the NGOs and they are not trying to provide the child with school material expecting support from others.

The questioners from all three cities are in Annex 8.

The list of participants on these meetings is in Annex 7.

2.4. To send out questioners to the elementary school

Questioners to the schools were sent out in the both part of the campaign. The questioners were approved and supported by the Board for development of education of languages of members of communities, with the Ministry of education.

In the first part of the campaign we sent out questioners to 169 elementary and 52 high schools throughout Macedonia, and we received replies from 52 elementary and 26 high schools.

In the second part of the campaign we sent out questioners to 64 elementary schools, and we accented the children for preparation year and first grade, and we received replies from 31 schools.

The general conclusion is that the schools consider that the illiterate parents, as well as season work engagements are the largest problems and reasons for their unenrollment. They consider that there is still some work to be done with the parents.

In relation to the numbers, the questioners point out to a mild increasing of the number of children who enrolled in the 2006/2007 school year. Especially significant is the number of enrolled children in the preparation year and the number of enrolled children overcomes the number first graders from the last year.

Copies of the questioners are delivered as Annex 10.

To all of the schools a mutual letter was delivered from NRC and the Board for development of education of languages of members of communities. The letter is added as Annex 9.

3. Decreased stereotypes and prejudice towards the Roma children

3.1. To continue the work of the Medial Lobby Group

The work of the Media Lobby Group has shown productive in the both parts of the campaign and we can say with certainty that the positive informing about the Roma in Macedonia is increasing.

– Zoran Ivanov, director of the Macedonian Informative Agency,

– Dragan Antonovski from the national TV Sitel,

– Stole Naumov from the national radio station Chanel 77,

– Ljubica Grozdanovska, newspaper DNEVNIK

– Mirdita Saliu from the Roma redaction of MTV.

The only change relating to the first part of the campaign is that in this part we did not insist on writing columns, but we created articles for the printed and the electronic media. We are especially satisfied with the work of the journalist Ljubica Grozdanovska from the newspaper “Dnevnik” who intensively published all of the information which benefited the Roma education in Macedonia.

“Dnevnik” through its main editor remained fateful to the agreement and provided main coverage for the campaign.

A significant influence provided the Macedonian Informative Agency which distributed the information from us and the other organizations. The information was not solely for education. This was a significant penetration of the Roma problematic in the media, which was not the case several years ago. In that way the process for mutual education of the Roma and the non Roma began.

All of the published texts, articles and emissions will be delivered as Annex 12 in the report.

3.2. To organize a journalist workshop

The journalist workshop was held in September, in the NGO Info Center in Skopje. 18 journalists attended at the workshop from the Macedonian and the Albanian printed and electronic media. The workshop was led by the journalist Zoran Ivanov. Before the workshop started, we presented to the journalist the documentary film, which was prepared a part of the campaign.

An especially significant effect was that the journalists showed interest and opened a fruitfull discussion regarding the Roma issue and after holding of the workshop the larger part of them are in continuous contact and through mutual cooperation placed significant information in the public. The list of participants on the session will be delivered as Annex 13.

The aim of the workshop was preparation of the Media Strategy for the contribution of the journalists in order to enrol children in the educational process. The Media strategy is attached as Annex 15.

After several meetings and workshops for the journalists, as well from the work of the Media Lobby Group the informing by the journalists in Macedonia has been significantly improved and more positive.

The following are publicized information by the journalists who attended at the workshop within the frames of the campaign.

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN BITOLA

Roma hired in administration

Ramiz Rustemov is the first Roma in Bitola was hired in the public administration as a clerk. The Ministry for labor and social policy decided to professionally engage Rustemov from the Social works center in Bitola as a referent who will realize contacts with the Roma from Bitola, as the most socially endangered category of citizens.

For fifteen years I have been working as an activist in the non governmental sector and I am dedicated to the problems of the Roma from Bitola, and now I am going to work in an institution that deals with the problems of about thousand Roma – said Rustemov yesterday.

In the Social works center are expecting from him to easen up procedure and communication with the Roma because they are the largest social assistance users, but also for other services and assistance: rehabilitation from alcohol, socialization of families, reconciliation of families and individuals. According to the last census there are about 6000 Roma and with seven percent they are the second largest ethnical group in this city after the Macedonians.

„Tikves Roma ”

Over 80 percent of the Roma from the Tikves area are illiterate

KAVADARCI – The citizens’ association “Tikves Roma” from Kavadarci conducted a poll these days and they came up with the result that over 80% of the Roma who live in the Tikves area are illiterate and 90% of them do not know their rights and need legal assistance. The president of the association, Raim Sulejmanov, said that they are pressuring the parents to send their children to school besides the poor financial condition. “This kind of activity has shown results”, he says.

The Tikves Roma say that they are facing employment discrimination.
”We all receive social assistance, but the monthly incomes from 1.000-2.000 denars can not satisfy our needs. We even owe 100 000 denars in electric bills”, several Roma have complained from the Teneke Maalo in the Tikves area. From the municipality say that they are not an employment biro and according to their possibilities they assist the Roma population as much as they can. Very soon the Roma children with the help of the World Bank can go to the kindergarten for free, and the older ones can study computer courses. (A. D.)

We did not plan for a press conference to be held, but we estimated that the projection of the documentary film would have very important influence in order to bring important data to the journalists relating the Roma education in Macedonia. The press conference caused interest because of the projection of the film, but also because of the increasing numbers of Roma children in schools brought out in public. However there are still many children on the streets. The list of the participations at the press conference is attached as Annex 13.

Documentary film for the Roma education in the country

Skopje, 11th of September (MIA) – A documentary film will be shown tonight at the multimedia centre Mala Stanica, and it is about the Roma education in Macedonia. The film was produced by Porta FM, directed by Dragan Antonovski, and it is a part of program activities of the National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo.

– The projection tonight is a part of the campaign for education of the Roma which we are implementing since the beginning of the year with support of several municipalities from the country, the Ministries for education, science, labor and social policy, the president of the state, the media etc. The target groups are the children from preschool, was pointed out by Slavica Curcinska, assistant in the National Roma Centrum, on the press conference today. According to the last data of the Centrum, this year in the elementary schools in Skopje about 100 more children were enrolled in relation to last year. But about a thousand children each year remain outside of the educational process, and the most common reason is not having personal documentation.

– With showing of the documentary we hope that we will initiate a new process of understanding and approach towards the Roma education in the country, was said by the project coordinator Asmet Elezovski. There is a great interest about the film and in December it will be shown in the Euro parliament.

The Roma in Prilep poor and discriminated

Zlatka Purkovic

21.08.2005

Run away, or the Gypsies will come to take you away and to sell you. This is how the grandmothers and mothers scared the children in Prilep when they did not behave.

Is this the way the stereotypes and prejudice are born and wrong measures for the human values?

There are over 4000 Roma in Prilep. One third of them are young people with normal needs like every other young people with the same desires and dreams. Many of them felt racial discrimination on their own back.

„The doorman when sees that you are Roma, sends you back or tells you that there is a private party” said Samij Ajdini.

The possibilities for any kind of fun in the ghettoized Trizla settlement in Prilep are reduced to minimum.

Even in the summer sitting down in restaurants are not for everyone and least of all of for the young Roma from Prilep. Their owners deny that they are nor letting Roma in.

„They even distance themselves. I do not know what are the reasons, there is some kind stereotype about them” said an owner of a café bar.

A large part of the Roma live at the very edge of existence, they sufficate in mud and poverty, but this does not mean that we should not offer a helping hand.

„Not very often, most of them in their part of the city just once a week, on Sunday walk around the city” says Darko Boskovski.

With the priorities of the Roma Decade, part of the problems might be solved. Parts of them are being solved through the non governmental sector.

„They must overcome the prejudice so that the Macedonian NGOs could mutually begin projects, which would be for solving of conflicts, problem between the nationalities”, said Muharem Jasaroski.

The dirty streets, poverty, unemployment are less painful than the dirty word Gypsies, say the Roma in Prilep. They have a reputation that they live day by day, but this is their philosophy to which they are entitled to, as we are to our own.

The Roma ethnicity is emancipating in a quick paste, but still the habit remains for begging and selling

Only every tenth Roma child finishes eight grades

Those who drop out of school choose the street life naked and barefooted

Zaklina Gorcevic

“Give me five denars”. These are the usual words of the nine year old Sevdjul, one of the six children of the Roma family Arifi, while he stands on the crossroad at the Red Cross to earn a few denars more for his brothers and sisters, two of them are invalids. He was born here but he does not have any documents that he is a citizen of Macedonia and this is why he can not go to school, although his parents are not against it. His mother who is a refugee from Kosovo has this kind of status. “I want to go to school but the teachers do not let me”, says Avdjul bashfully covering his face with his dirty hands. His eleven year old friend, Sevdjul Dimiri-Luke, unlike many others knows how to write down her name and surname. She says that she goes to a school called “Soncogled” in the settlement in Skopje, Kisela Voda, and she does not want to drop out of school. She learns a lot, but in her free time she begs on the streets.

Each tenth Roma child finishes elementary school, and those who continue in high school, go to faculties. Those who leave schools choose street life and they end up naked, barefooted, with sponges or babies in their hands, in some box on the Stone Bridge waiting in the cold or in summer for someone to throw some money at them… Unlike then, now, the Roma for the first time are being massively included in administration, police, local self government etc… But in the real world their life is changing slowly. The official numbers say that from total of 43.000, or 2.2 percent who live here in the total number of unemployed are only 4.4 percent. This percentage refers to those who only have eight years of education, which means that this dark number is far more massive. The emancipation of the Roma, who massively live on the peripheries, is stuck in the labyrinth “life habit” which forces them to race with time in order to provide existence.

The president of the United party for Roma emancipation, Nezdet Mustafa, says that the Roma need to fight for their rights, even though they are still over loaded with social and economic depressions and with inferior education. He considers that the Roma should not be treated as a social people, and with regret he concludes that the number of poor Roma has increased like never before. ‘I can not speak in superlative form when I am talking about Roma, their substandard homes, without any infrastructure, begging on the streets, and looking for a piece of bread in thrash cants”, said Mustafa during the celebration of the International Roma day – 8th of April when he called upon the Roma with joint efforts to fight for their rights. He evaluated that the Roma are afraid to ask for what is rightfully theirs according to the Constitution. ‘This is a result of poor education. We have a unique opportunity, within European frames to grasp for justice and equality with all of the citizens as declared with the Constitution”, explained Mustafa.

D-r Trajko Petrovski, ethnologist, who works in the Institute for folklore and ethnology, explains that the Roma are already starting to accept some modern habits, but their ignorance is what is holding them back. “The largest mistake of the Roma is that they did not learn in the past, they did not educate themselves and now that is reflecting their every day life. They need to be included in the educational system. This means that the parents of the Roma children need to be included, so that they could influence their children and to stimulate them to get education. Petrovski points out several reasons why the Roma do not go to school. He considers that above all the parents are guilty because they are not educated, then there is the social condition, the lack of Roma cadre in schools, as well as discrimination among the Roma themselves, which is most visible in the non governmental organizations.

Roza Perusevska from the Biro for development of education, as main weaknesses in the Roma education considers the not on time enrollment in first grade, the low grades during education, dropping out from school in the fifth grade and a lot of absence from school. “Part of the reasons is the economic condition of the Roma families and the negative attitude towards studying”, she says.

On 8th of April, the International day of the Roma people, everyone remembers on the problems of this community.

Education will save the Roma

Within five years, the participation of the Roma women has increased for 100%

Zaklina Gjorgjevic

Mabera Kamberi for three years has been working as an assistant – minister in the Ministry for labor and social policy. She got this function because she was a successful student on the Philosophical faculty, after working for seventeen years as a referent in AD “Teteks” – Tetovo. Many know her as a rare example of a successful Roma woman, who unselfishly fights for the rights of the Roma to improve their status. Because of many credits on this field the American embassy announced her as one of the most successful women in 2004, when the non governmental organizations awarded her for special contribution for the development of the Roma. But her progress does not stop here. Today she is the head of the government coordinative body for implementation of the Roma decade for implementation of the Roma Decade, member of the Board committee for the Decade in Bucharest and a member of the board of the Roma education fund from Budapest.

But not all Roma have Mabera’s fortune to finish school on time, to be employed and to progress. In the era of digitalization, many of them do not have even the basic living condition, and they drop out of school. In conditions when it is required from them to fit in the modern living trends, the Roma from Macedonia face with real problems, which they can not resolve. They live in substandard homes, beg to survive, or sell stuff at the largest open market place in Suto Orizari. Their parents do not report their children when they are born from ignorance, which causes further complications in their life, and when the time comes for them to find work they can not do so not only because of the great competition, but also because they are not enough qualified. These problems which were meant to be resolved with the Roma Decade 2005-2015, are still standing in one place because of lack of finances for improvement of their life.

There are 55,000 Roma in Macedonia, although unofficially the number is larger from 80,000 to 100,000. 40,000 of them are considered to live in the Municipality Suto Orizari which is the only Roma municipality in the country. The percentage of unemployment in the municipality is about 78%, and 4000 people or 5400 households are on the social assistance users lists.

“The largest problem for the Roma is poverty which a main reason for the low level of education. The problem is dropping out during enrollment from elementary to high school, which occurs because of the socio-economic condition they are in. Unfortunately a large number of families do not let their children to go to school because they consider that they can not go very far being educated”-says Erduan Iseni, the Mayor of the municipality. But he does point out that there is some progress. Within five years the participation of the Roma women in administration has increased for 100%. The Roma consciousness is changing. Unlike before marriages between minors have decreased, and according to our final data from 100 marriages, only 10 of them are between minors.

Amset Elezovski, the president of the National Roma Centrum, says that there is a slight improvement in the status of the Roma within these last few years, but still the main problem is education. According to their information, every tenth Roma child finishes elementary education, and the number of those who do not go to school is still very large.

This is the case with the nine year old Sevdjul, who begs every day on the crossroad near the Red Cross in Skopje. He says that he wants to earn some money for his five brothers and sisters, from whom two of them are invalids. He does not go to school because he does not have any personal documents, and neither does his mother who is a refugee from Kosovo.

The largest dropping out from school of the Roma happens in the fifth grade. When they get to the fifth grade, a large part of them are illiterate so they drop out. Additional problems are finances. But however the authorities say that the largest success is in high school. Right now there are 680 Roma in high schools, this number has doubled since last year when there were only 267 students. They are receiving scholarships through the Ministry of education in cooperation with the Roma education fund. There are 160 students enrolled on faculties who are receiving scholarships from the state, but part of them had to quit, because they do not have conditions to study at home.

Roma from Tetovo demand classes on Roma language

A larger group of Roma parents, through the NGO “Anglulipe-prosperitet”, in Tetovo, took up an initiative for returning on classes on Roma language. That kind of classes was active for five years, but ended in 2001. So far 40 parents signed a petition to the Ministry of education to separate financial means for realization of the program for facultative learning of the Roma language from second to eight grade, which is already prepared from the Biro of development of education. These kinds of classes would be in the E. S. “Goce Delcev” and the principle Dimitar Siskovski already expressed that he is prepared to organize this after fulfilling of the legal conditions.

“We have a sufficient number of teachers for these kind of classes. We do not want for the boards of the elementary schools “Bratstvo” and “Istikbal” to register our children as Turks, but as Roma with the right to learn on their native language”, said the president of the NGO “Anglulipe-prosperitet”, Hasan Idrizi.

We decided for the conference to be held in Skopje because of the presence of the national media. We informed every printed and electronic media in Skopje, we sent them invitations by e-mail and fax, and we also called them by phone to ensure their presence. A positive fact was that before the press conference we organized a meeting with the journalists and we continuously sent them information and kept intensive contacts. Because of that the invitation of the press conference was expected and positive accepted.

Campaign for education of the Roma “The key is in your hands”

Every tenth Roma child finishes eight grade

Every tenth Roma child finishes eight grade. From about 8000 Roma students, enrolled in elementary school, not even 600 finish it. The largest dropping out is in fifth grade, and the largest problem is to overcome the Macedonian language. The Roma children do not know the Macedonian language when they start going to school and that causes enormous problems for them.

This is the condition with the education of the Roma, which should be improved with the new campaign “The key is your hands” – which was presented yesterday by the National Roma Centrum. The campaign according to the Centrum will have for a goal a greater inclusion of the Roma children in schools through motivation of the parents as well as, decreasing of the stereotypes and prejudice towards the Roma pupils.

“There is a general trend in Macedonia of improving of the education of the Roma pupils, but there is still some repulsion with the other pupils and teachers towards them” – said Asmet Elezovski, the coordinator of the campaign. On the press conference yesterday, who also added that besides this, the Roma are facing with financial difficulties. According to him in order to solve the problem of the Roma a concrete action is needed, and not just plans written down on a piece of paper. Voislav Marjanovic, from the Board for development of education of communities said that last year from total of 700 Roma pupils, 511 enrolled in high school and they are all receiving scholarships from the resource Ministry. The Ministry does not have the data for the rest 200 pupils, why did they not enroll. He also announced that they are opening a Roma language study group and the Pedagogical faculty in Skopje and also a Roma study at the Philology faculty.

Campaign for education of the Roma: There is improvement, but also repulsion towards the Roma children

Skopje, 13th of March (MIA) – There is an improvement of the situation with the Roma education, there is a will, but still the fact remains about the repulsion towards the Roma child by his classmates and teachers, said Asmet Elezovski, the coordinator of the campaign for education of the Roma in Macedonia entitled “The key is your hands”.

He considers that the entire process of larger inclusion of the Roma in education will not succseed if the citizens of Macedonia do not change their attitude towards these children and accept them for who they are.

According to Elezovski, the Roma issue needs to be actualized right this minute, when a larger part of the population still faces with hiding of their basic human rights – prejudice, discrimination and marginalization.

Talking about the campaign, which began in January, he added that the National Roma Centrum is working intensive on larger inclusion of the Roma children in schools through motivation of their parents, decreasing of the stereotypes and prejudice towards them and open cooperation with schools.

One encouraging fact for him is that the European parliament recently adopted a declaration for the Roma in the European Union. “This has encouraged us to say that we are also a part of Europe and as such we have equal rights like everyone else”, said Elezovski, informing that Macedonia has five-six Roma representatives in the European Forum.

The projection of the film in front of the representatives of the government was not planed according to the project, but was shown useful for further acceptance.

My Rahbet and our Roma

Labina Mitevska

Fifteen months ago, last year, working on a German film for several months I stayed in Southern Germany. For a whole week I was working with a German actress with whom we became friends. Each day while waiting between sets we talked about everything. And I wanted to drink a cup of coffee, and because the people who prepared food for us were from Turkey, they from time to time prepared us Turkish coffee, if we asked them. We asked them and they made it. We drank the coffee and instinctively I turned around the cup, something I have not done since I do not when. My German colleagues looked at me kind of confused. I told them that I am going to tell my fortune from the coffee cup. They asked – you really know how to tell fortune from a coffee cup? I told them that everyone in Macedonia knows hoe to do that, but I have not done that since I was a teenager, when we skipped classes and sat down in “Stefani”. Everyone was trilled by my talent and I told the fortune to five of my colleagues that day. I do not whether I guessed something or not, but the point at the end of the day was that they insisted to tell them where I got my talent. From Rahbet I told them. From who? From Rahbet, I said it again. She was a Roma women who was working in our house for more then ten years. I learned a lot from her and one of the things was telling someones fortune from a cup of coffee. She really was a part of my family, with her kindness, and with her constant smile she made our home a warmer place to live in. They told me – we know the queen from Macedonia, the queen of the Roma music, she has a concert this year here and we all will be there.

Day

That day I thought of Rahbet. After a while she left for Germany and our home was left without her. Many childhood memories mine and of my family are connected to her. We just love her and she loves us. I am sitting at night, sitting and watching TV. I stopped on a program where I suddenly saw many beautiful faces, wonderfully prepared gentlemen communicating with each other. Watching this show, I suddenly asked my self where I live and with who I live. Suddenly you are looking maybe at a new future of Macedonia. You see people who have something to say, who know how to say it, who respect themselves without any difference among political belonging, position – opposition. And you suddenly realize that all of our prejudice relating to Romany minorities fall down into water, you realize that the identity they have, the pride they posses, the honesty they carry, and this can not be compared on any level to the politicians or intellectuals, or students who deal with politics and posing at least the ones appearing on TV. The young people who participated on this show and with such pride they talked about themselves and about their people and it was really a pleasure to look at them to listen to them and to feel proud that in Macedonia we have a large percentage of the Roma population.

The day after the day

I went to the Bit Pazar, to Burdush the blacksmith. This is a Roma family that has the oldest blacksmith’s workshop in Skopje. I met the most wonderful and the most professional and well mannered people with whom I worked. It is a pleasure to watch them work with such love, and with honest work are earning their piece of bread.

The following day

The following day I went to a concert of the queen of Romany music Esma. For her size as an artist, for her professionalism it is unnecessary to speak. Esma again made a beautiful concert for Skopje and for all Macedonians. We enjoyed in her voice in her human greatness. At those moments I remembered of some unforgettable performances of the “Pralipe” with the legendary Burhan and his plead of extra ordinary actors, then I remembered to all of those Roma characters in Kosturica’s movies, the extraordinary political journalist Mishko, and the popular entertainment programs on the two Roma televisions.

The day after

These several days I have been constantly thinking, living with the Roma from Macedonia. And that got me thinking about the stereotypes with which we live and a question whether we Macedonians give enough and know enough to see all of the beautiful things which the minorities know to give to this country.

These last fifteen years the fact is obvious about the progress of the Roma in Macedonia.. All of the pointes say that their number is growing from several people to several hundreds of people. This turn about is mostly because of the self organisation of the Macedonian Roma.

The financial assistance from abroad, the understanding and the encouraging of our authorities, all of this results with great progress. But it seems that the change of consciences is missing and greater acceptance of this population on an equal level in our country. Unfortunately we can not ignore the still present incidents and the police brutality towards these people who are still the most endangered group in this country. The Roma are struggling to get out of the hell of poverty and with their merry spirit to enjoy life in the most sincere and purest way. I can not continue any further, because the injustice they suffer hurts too much. Only the joy remains to be seen how fast and how well the Macedonian Roma use every opportunity for increased integration and the faith that this condition will be overcome. The hope remains that we will soon leave our prejudices, from which we can not see with whom really we share our small Macedonia.

(The author is an actress)

Especially significant for the campaign was the work of the Media lobby Group which was awarded a second prize for best written journalist text for the Week against poverty awarded to Ljubica Grozdanovska, by the United Nations. Here is the text in two parts, published in the newspaper Dnevnik.

Dnevnik 28.09.2006

MINORS WORKING FOR A PIECE OF BREAD IN KAVADARCI

Children working for 100 denars

Miners on the age 7-8 years, are working for 100 denars per hour, and are working for 11 hours in the vineyards in Tikves.

The thirteen year old K. V. from Strumica instead of pencil and notebook, for almost a month is holding a knife in his hands cutting of grapes in the vineyards in Kavadarci.

This knife is sharp and it is cutting the grapes pretty well. I can not get hurt because I got used to holding it. It is much better for me in school but I had to work, because I want new clothes. This wasn’t the first time for me to cut grapes. I was working last year also. When the work here is done I will go back to school. I know I messed some classes, but I hope that the teachers will understand. I do not have the time to talk now, I must cut these grapes – said the young worker and entered in the lines of the vineyard.

With his parents and four brothers and a sister came to work in the vineyards in Kavadarci three weeks ago. He only saw his classroom and his classmates in the fourth grade on the 1^st of September. Since then he is cutting grape, filling the ten kilos wooden boxes for fruit and helps to get them to the trucks.

He is not getting any settlement for his work because he is a child and he is not registered as a worker. He works on his parent’s request. They take his daily wage from 100 denars. But he is hoping that after the harvest he will get his money and that he will be paid enough to buy a new blouse, jeans and shoes.

K. V. shoulder to shoulder works with sixty more other workers from Stip and Strumica. Among them there are children who are only 4 years old. There are also children six, seven eights years old. The adult ones are at the age 18 to 75. They are all socially endangered and live out of monthly social assistance from 2000 denars. K. V. each morning gets up at six o’clock, and comes back at 17:00 o’clock in the afternoon. He eats and sleeps with the entire group, which is staying in a abandoned barn, 500 meters from the vineyard where he works. He shares his meals with his parents, and sleeps on the floor of the barn with the other children.

While K. V. was cutting grapes all the time, Sebastian Mustafovski (33) from Stip, who works in that same group, stood aside and was watching his son, the seven year old A. M. trying to reach the grapes on the higher branches. Sebastian was resting and was telling us about his life. A. M. is in the first grade in the elementary school “Vanco Prke” in Stip, but he is not going to school his father can not afford to buy him school books. A. M. is working in the vineyard on request of his father.

I have to steal to buy him books. In this way I am working honestly. The child had to come here because there is no one in Stip to watch over him. And because he is already here he might as well do some work. I explained to his teachers. They pressured me not to take him out of school, but I told them that they have no other choice but to let him go. I will go to jail if necessary, but the most important thing is to make some money to provide him food. When we go back home I might mot let him to go back to school – says Mustafovski

He says that not even the employers can prevent the children to cut the grapes.

The employers know that we come here with our children. But they are no registered as workers, only we are. They sign working contracts with us because in tat way they calculate how much food they need to prepare for us. Then we share the meals with our children – explains Mustafovski.

He is not yet thinking what he will do when he goes back to Stip. With his four member family he is living on social assistance. He calculated that this work will pay him about 12.000 denars.

With one part of the money I will pay off my debts. With the rest of the money I will buy paprika for ajvar (food prepared from paprika, a kind of Macedonian traditional food) and some fire wood. I can tell whether some money will remain to buy something for the children – says Sebastian

His group collects 150 wooden fruit boxes per day. For one box they get 10 denars. As soon as they finish working in one field they move to another. This month they have been to at least 30 locations. They are going back home in a few days. K. V. wants to go back to school, Mustafovski is planning to go from one house to another in Stip and to ask if someone needs to get his wood cut for the winter.

Dnevnik 29.08.2006

ABSENCE FROM CLASSES DUE TO GRAPE HARVEST IN KAVADARCI

The people in charge turn a blind eye in front of the children’s labor

The schools, social work centers, the Ministry for education and the Ombudsman’s office are letting them work because of the poverty of the pupils’ families.

The empty stomach and the poverty are forcing these socially endangered families from Strumica and Stip with their children to work in the vineyards and the authorized institutions because of those reasons are letting them to stay out of schools. It is impossible to survive with the 2000 denars social assistance which they are receiving and this is forcing their parents not to oblige the law to send their children to schools and is risking loosing the settlement from the state. The elementary schools, the social centers, the Ministry for education and the Ombudsman’s office are turning a blind eye on them. Parts of them are not familiarized with these cases, but they are raising their shoulders in front of the question which is a solution for the problem. But they are admitting that they do not want to take any rigorous measures although the laws are strict and there is a penalty for this like going to prison, as well as taking away their children. Pointers to the parents that they must not abuse the labor of their children, advices that they must send them to school, preparation of a strategy from the state are the measures that the institutions propose.

In the elementary school “Marsal Tito” in Strumica, where the thirteen year old K. V. is going, who for the last three weeks instead of being in school is cutting grapes on the plantations in Kavadarci, know that he is not visiting classes. From there say that they let K.V. leave on the fields on request from his parents. They are registering his absence. But they do not know how he will justify his absence or whether he will go back to school after a month of absence.

We pointed out to the parents that what they are doing is illegal and that they might be punished, but they did not listen. We can not suggest anything to the children because hey are doing what their parents tell them. Because they are absent for so long we do not know whether we are going to allow them to back to classes. We must convey the schools board and to notify the educational inspector – say in the elementary school from Strumica.

In the Center for social works in Strumica say that they know about the social users who go to work in other towns for season works but they admit that they are turning the blind eye on them because “they do not want to leave the social users without any money”.

We are willingly letting them to earn some extra money. What are we suppose to do? To cancel the 2000 denars assistance from which a four member family survives? We are performing a check up on the social users these days. First of all we are looking for them to confirm that they are still on our pay roll. If we can not find them we leave them a message to come the following day in the Center. In that way we are giving them time not to miss the opportunity for assistance – says Zoran Manev, the director of the Center.

In the Ombudsman’s office in Skopje say that they are opening a procedure for these kind of cases for abuse of the child labor. But they say that they are not going to require high sanctions for the parents.

We do not have anything to say yet because this occurrence is about to be examined. These kinds of cases are rare here. We will suggest advisory measures to raise the awareness of the parents – they say.

From the Ministry of education say that the elementary schools need to deal with these situations.

The state must find funds with which to the children of the social endangered families will provide free school books and to award additional social assistance. With that money they can provide food and clothing for the winter period. This is not something new in the foreign countries, we could just use their experience – consider in the non governmental organization “National Roma Centrum” from Kumanovo

Season learning, legal laboring

Sanja Atanasova (MIM)

Stana Mamutovska from the Kumanovo settlement Pero Cicov barely feeds her nine children. Recently she was working for 20 days in Batinci in Skopje, and she brought her children with her, who were enrolled in school.

– For a box of grapes we get 60 denars, and for a kilo old iron they pay 8 denars. We bought fire wood. We must do what we can – she says.

Her 12 year old daughter Gjufeta Demiri says that the teacher understand her and justify her absence. The 10 year old Muhamed Kurtisi who was working in Serbia with his parents lives in the same neighborhood.

Muhamed and Gjufeta are not an exception. Almost all of the children from this settlement, are absent from school when the season work starts.

They labor with their parents in Tikves, Strumica or in Serbia. They pick up grapes, corn, turnip etc…

The employed in the elementary schools are acquainted with this problem.

Minoslav Trajkovski, the principle of the E. S. “Toli Zordumis” says that there are about 20 Roma children in the school, but only 2-3 of them are problematic. He says that they do not come to school because they are abandoned by their parents.

– From 1300 pupils in the school, 300 hundred of them are Roma. At the end of September by the beginning of October their absence becomes massive occurance – says Daniela Stojanovska, a mathematics teacher in the E.S. “Hristijan Karpos”.

She adds that for their absences the Roma children have various excuses.

In the E.S. “11 Oktomvri”, the principle Krune Mladenovski says that there are 140 Roma pupils. Some of them perform manual labor, but most of them are regular.

Elementary education in Macedonia is obligatory by law and for those who break it monetary fines will be paid.

About 30 reports were receive last year, and several are currently being processed

The educational state inspector Tome Spirovski says that unlike before more children finish elementary education. Spirovski points out the largest problem with which they are facing.

– We are handicapped. According to the law for protection of data, MVR and the department for birth registration do not provide information and we do not know what the exact number of pupils is.

The inspector explains that that if the pupils are absent for more than 30 days, then they receive notifications. If they continue to be absent then there are monetary fines or in the gravest situations the children are taken away from their parents.

The NGOs “Romasi”, “Kham” and the “National Roma Centrum” are active in Kumanovo. Milan Demirovski, manager of “Kham” says that they are helping the roma families with providing books and clothing, but they can not prevent their laboring. According to him season work of the minor Roma is most common with the children of the settlements Bavci and Pro Cicov

Preparing of an address book for the journalists

The address book contains the basic information about the Roma NGOs in Macedonia as well as contact persons for detailed information. The address book was distributed to the journalists during the meetings, workshops and conferences. We are delivering the prepared address book in the report. The address book is attached as Annex 14.

Meetings for young journalists

On this meeting we gathered 10 Roma journalists who completed the training for the work in the media, which was organized by the Macedonian Media Institute. On the meeting we exchanged information in regard of their engagements, relating to their acceptance by the other journalists and the way how their stories are being treated.

A large part of them were put on probation work, with low incomes which were very disappointing and reflected negatively on them.

From the 12 Roma journalists who came out of the school for journalists, still active are Adem Ademi (A1), Ines Mustafovska (A1) and Ajet Osmanovski (MIM).

Relevance

As additional information about the analyses of the data we are posting the opinion of Sonja Lepitkova, the director of the Commission for education in the Assembly of Republic of Macedonia, brought out on the Conference “Education of the Roma in Macedonia” which was organized by NRC in February 2006: “We need to strengthen the instutional capacities of the state and to build mechanisms in order to prevent this occurance. We need to engage on this, educational inspectors, expert services, representatives of MVR, centers for social works”. She considers that we need to work on inclusion of the Roma children in pre school activities so that they could get to like school, even if the state subventions that

Marina Stojkovska, adviser in the Prime ministers’ office on an occasion pointed out: “In the total process of Macedonia’s integration in the European Union the issue for improvement of the status of the Roma is an issue on which we need to devote special attention”. She also added that it is necessary to brake the traditional prejudices towards the Roma population, which will contribute for total integration of the Roma in economic, political, social and culture life.

Considering all of the problems and the real condition with the educational level, the conditions for education and the desire for overcoming of the main difficulties, NRC considers that the activities and efforts so far are relevant, but also that further urges are necessary for solving of the problem with the Roma education. During the realization of the campaign we had some additional unsolved issues and problems, but also possible ways of overcoming them.

Solving of the problem with creation of clean ethnic classes – one of the largest problems in the three cities was the forming of clean ethnic classes, which reflected negatively in the further process of education and achieving of results in regard of integration of the Roma children in the educational process. The schools are interested in solving of this problem, they are opening their doors for receiving of the Roma children, and they even offer school books to them and other conveniences. However the main problem is with the parents whose excuse is that these schools are the closest to their living environment and that the children go to school by themselves without causing obligation to take them there. Usually the other schools are not very far away but the traffic is dense. One of the possibilities for overcoming of this problem would be if NRC provides regular transportation of the children from their homes to school and vice versa.

Access to personal data of the children – Until three years every school, depending on the location, sent out invitations to every child who was to be enrolled in school that year. The data for the children were received from the Ministry of education, but this activity was canceled. NRC considers that this kind of approach towards schools would be very positive for the Roma population, especially when the schools cooperating with NRC would pupils from the area in question (in that way the occurrence of ethnic clean classes would be prevented). NRC could assist in this kind of activity through providing of a data base about the Roma pupils.

Including of Roma mediators in the groups for preparation year and in first grade – While the non Roma children are learning lessons from the curriculum the Roma children are learning the Macedonian language and they do not achieve to acquire enough knowledge to get tot the higher grades. So the largest percentage of dropping out from school is in the fifth grade. However the problem could be overcomed with additional activities in the preparation year and in first grade. NRC could participate during the first experimental year, with engaging of Roma mediators who would help the Roma children to overcome the Macedonian language and to fit in more easily in the educational process.

Organizing of a hearing within the Macedonian Parliament for the education of the Roma – in regard of informing and considering possible solutions for the educational problem of the Roma in Macedonia, we consider that it would be of significance to organize a hearing on which in front of the Macedonian MPs, NRC and representatives of the European Parliament or the European Commission would bring out the problematic and the possible solutions and suggestions.

Conference for editors – The work of the Media Lobby Group has shown especially significant for a public “promotion” of the Roma issue and for starting of a mutual education between the Roma and the non Roma. For even bigger effects and for engaging of the journalists in overcoming of the stereotypes towards the Roma, NRC considers that it would be important to organize a larger Conference with participation of the main editors of all the media from the cities with a larger number of Roma populations.

External evaluation

1. Evaluation of Vera Mucunska, from Ministry for education and science

On the activities of the project of the National Roma Centrum

– Campaign for education of the Roma –

(Mobilization of the Roma parents to send their children in regular schools)

In accordance with the international documents in which the rights of the communities are regulated for acquiring of education in the educational systems in the countries, with the Constitution and educational laws of Republic of Macedonia the necessary preconditions were provided for maximal possible inclusion of the Roma children in the educational system.

The treating of the complexity of the problem is permanent program task and obligation of educational institutions and numerous non governmental organizations and associations in Republic of Macedonia which, besides the humbly achievements are leaders in regard of the inclusion of members of the Roma community in the educational system and their integration in all segments of society’s life. Intensifying of these activities is noticeable with the beginning of the Roma Decade, and in Republic of Macedonia with these activities, the non governmental organization National Roma Centrum – Kumanovo has especially pointed out with the project Campaign for education of the Roma (Mobilization of the Roma parents to send their children in regular schools).

The basic goal of the project is to show the conditions of inclusion of the Roma children in the elementary educational system as well as the actual problematic about realization of this population, with proposals, conclusions, and measures for improvement of the condition. However, the main task of the carriers of the project is animating the parents for continually raising the awareness about the problem and about the meaning of education.

Considering the results from the analyses of the conditions with education of the Roma children made in the last period from numerous involved and relevant factors, up front come the problems of the not on time enrolment in preparation year and in first grade, often dropping out from school, especially in the fifth grade, low results from acquiring knowledge, numerous absences from school etc. This kind of condition results from various reasons, but above all are economic-social background of the pupils, low level of education of the parents, their negative attitude towards education and not knowing the Macedonian language when they start going to preschool and in first grade non visitation of kindergartens as beginner institutions for socialization of the child’s personality, culturally depressed family environment in the years of early childhood etc. These are the reasons which speak for themselves for the need of individual approach in the educational work with this population and on the other hand regarding the age of the target group, a mobilization of the parents is necessary. This is the primary goal of the project team-activation of the partnership with the parents in order for them to understand their role in the educational process of heir children.

In the predicted time frame the project team focuses on the cooperation with the parents in their homes, after the delivered invitations meetings has been realized in the officeand meetings with school’s authorities.

In the non formal meetings with the teachers, the team has promoted a model for humane treatment towards the pupils, with overcoming of the stereotypes and prejudice as well as for ethnic acceptance of the Roma with creation of a pleasant atmosphere of tolerance.

Through the analyses of the interviews and questioners structural tables have been prepared with relevant pointers about the condition of the Roma on separate issues.

In 17 elementary schools in Skopje, Prilep and Kumanovo, the campaign was promoted and on those working meetings the representatives of all of the involved sides in the work with the problematic of the participated, teachers, expert services and principles of those schools who exchanged experiences, representatives of the local self governement who presented the Action plans within the frame of the Roma Decade and suggestions for their operating, and the Ministry of education and science which had a significant role in implementation of the project, thorugh providing of the necessary institutional support as well as consultative assistance on official meetings initiated by the carriers of the project.

The complete dynamics of realization of the drawn up project activities were transparent, thanks to the inclusion of several electronic and written media, which monitored the happenings and informed the public. From especial significance was the presentation of the documentary film for the success of the Roma Vaska Bajramovska Mustafa, which caused great attention and won first prize in the concourse of the Office of the United Nations in Republic of Macedonia. The theme of the film is fighting poverty and is supposed to motivate the Government institutions to change the condition with not enough investment in the risk groups from social-economic aspect, the concrete social cases in Republic of Macedonia, including the Roma.

For achieving of this goal one of the possibilities is finding of donors from the international government organizations in Republic of Macedonia (EU, EAR etc.).

The project of the National Roma Centrum – Kumanovo is a significant step of an ethnic community to reach above the margins. A reason more for this is that the team of the project identified the most important factor – the.

Evaluator

Verka Mucunska, Macedonian language professor

Professor on literature,

Acknowledged educational worker

Higher independed councilor at the MON

author, editor, school books and other publications

Evaluation by Vojislav Marjanovic, councilor in the Board for development and promotion of education of members of nationalities

The project of the National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo through the campaign for mobilization of the Roma parents to send their children to school contained in three strategic determinations:

1. Roma and their children

2. Government institutions, schools and local self government

3. Macedonian media

are areas which were located with research and offered possibilities for resolving of the problems in achieving of the right for education of the Roma community.

The conclusion is that, it depends from the parents whether the children would be included in the educational process and how sucssefull will that be, this is a fact which can not be denied and can be conected to the social educational condition of the parents.

The educational cycle in elementary education lasts for nine years, and begins at the age of six, called preparation year and the parent is bind to register the child in order to begin to go to school.

Preschool education (kindergarten) is not obligatory, but as such is in jurisdiction of the Ministry of Labor and Social policy and if it takes on a policy for taking care of the children whose parents are socially endagered could grasp this population in institutions for taking care of children by the age of six.

Advantages

The increased number of enrolled children for 50% in school, subject for research, but also a conclusion for a large number of unenrolled children, points out on the fact that every effort invested in that process can reduce the illetaracy of the Roma population.

A positive approach are the methods used for achieving of the goals relating to the target groups::

– Direct contacts (home visits)

– Filling up and processing of questioners

– Direct consultations

– Media activities

– Visits of elementary schools

– Constant informing of the system’s institutions.

Weaknesses

In this large project, introducing of a data base is missing, through which an overview would be created of registered children at the age of six, a total grasp in schools. At the moment the child enrolls his registering begins, which means that if he transfers to another school he can be deleted from the records of his previous school.

The approach towards creating a data base, in the further work might ease up the communication between the schools, NRC and the parent and I also consider that NRC should point its activities towards the urges for the`Roma to acquire the right for legal residence in Republic of Macedonia.

The researches are in the direction of:

– level of education of parents

– rooming conditions

– using of school books and materials

– socialization in the school’s enviornment

(teacher – pupil, pupil non Roma – pupil Roma)

– achieving the wish of the Roma parents for his child to acquire higher level of education.

– property condition in the family regarding the domestic conditions and an alternative for sucssesfull pedagogical – psyhological development of the child.

– TV, bathroom, telephone, more rooms, computers

As parameters point out on a non satisfactory degree of normal values, and as a final conclusion of the Roma condition is improvement of the conditions which present an obstacle for the Roma education.

3. Monitoring on the project by Asmete Osmanovski, a councilor in the Council of municipality of Kumanovo.

The project “The key is your hands” is a project which this year has contributed for larger grasp of the Roma children in schools and with the school bags which we gave a large incentive to the Roma children.

I witnessed the large interest of the children and the parents. The documentary film was not just an incentive for the Roma, but for the other ethnic communities as well.

All in all “The key is in your hands” has fulfilled its mission – larger involvement of the Roma in education and greater engagement of the parents.

The campaign is organized by National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo, with finance support from Roma Education Fund from Budapes

National Roma Centrum

str “Done Bozinov” 11/5

1 300 Kumanovo

Phone/fax: +389 (0)31 427 558

E-mail: info[at]nationalromacentrum[dot]org

www.nationalromacentrum.org

Roma Education Fund

www.romaeducationfund.org